In 2011, six women from the NY-based GABRIELA USA organization, Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE NYC), traveled to the Philippines on an exposure and integration program with Gabriela Philippines. The women, Hanalei Ramos, Candice Sering, Jennine Ventura, Zarah Vinola, Julie Jamora, and Krystle Cheirs, had one major goal in mind: to experience first-hand what the MASS MOVEMENT is like in the Philippines, and bring back what they learned to their community in the United States. On Monday, November 21, 2011, FiRE will host a special report-back from 7:00pm-9:00pm at the International Action Center’s Solidarity Center (55 W. 17th Street, Suite 5 C).

“We want people in New York to feel the dynamism of the National Democratic Movement in the Philippines,” stated Candice Sering, FiRE’s Cultural Director. “It was also important that we pay tribute to the organizers and communities that we met in a creative way.” The event will include interactive elements (guerilla theater, sound installation, and visual arts), traditional Filipino street foods, and stories. FiRE has also made it possible to view the event live via UStream.tv, a live-streaming Internet site, for those who are abroad (both nationally and internationally) but wish to support the event. “Our friends and fellow organizers in the Philippines can’t physically be here, but we wanted them to be able to share in the telling of their stories, so we’ll set up a live-stream,” stated Hanalei Ramos, who served as team leader for the summer trip.

In the wake of a global economic crisis and the worldwide Occupy people-led movement (including Occupy Philippines), FiRE is drawing connections to the people-powered National Democratic Movement in the Philippines. “By sending our members to the Philippines for an extended period of time, they witness and experience first-hand the concrete conditions that the basic masses, the real 99% of the Philippines, are living under every day,” said Jackie Mariano, Vice Chairperson of FiRE. “Most importantly, they learn how the masses have organized themselves to take action to build a brighter future.” The report-back will shed light on the daily injustices committed in the Philippines and the ways in which Filipinos are responding, challenging and changing the system.

For more information on Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment and the Exposure & Integration Program, visit http://firenyc.org.

UPDATE: If you can’t make it out, watch us LIVE! on FiRE’s UStream Channel! Send us your questions via chat during Q&A!

Six women. Countless Stoires. Only ONE reportback. About a MASS MOVEMENT POWERED by the PEOPLE.

In 2011, six FiRE sisters traveled to the Philippines on an exposure and integration program with a major goal in mind: to experience first-hand what the MASS MOVEMENT in the Philippines is like. They’ve come home to share the stories of the people and communities they met, learned from, and organized with. Join us for this special reportback on the vibrant, people-powered National Democratic Movement of the Philippines!

As Occupy Wall St. has taken the country by storm, why are developing countries around the world, such as the Philippines, expressing international solidarity for the American’s people’s rage over the effects of capitalism and corporate greed? What are the roots of the global economic crisis and how does this relate to Occupy Wall St. and people struggling around the world? Is there a need for greater cooperation and coordination amongst peoples struggling against the effects of finance capital, which Wall St. represents?

Join us as delegates from New York and New Jersey who traveled to Manila, Philippines in July 2011 speak on their experiences and impressions of the International League of People’s Struggle (ILPS), a global alliance of peoples organizations around the world, and report back on their time spent with Filipino peoples organizations waging a struggle for social liberation.

ILPS member organizations in the Tri-State area include the International Action Center, Al-Awda NY, NY May 1st Coalition for Worker and Immigrant Rights, and BAYAN USA.

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Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment (FiRE NYC) is a mass-based, grassroots women's organization serving New York City and its surrounding areas. We connect the Filipino diaspora to the women's struggle in the Philippines. We are women of Philippine descent, including those who are migrants, immigrants and US-born. We are Filipino women of mixed heritage and adoptees. We are a LGBTIQ-(Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Queer/Questioning) friendly organization, inclusive of transgender people of Philippine descent.
FiRE is a proud member of GABRIELA-USA and BAYAN USA.

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